A Consultant Dermatologist, Dr. Folakemi Cole-Adeife, has cautioned that the frequent use of sponges for bathing can be harmful to the skin, as it can strip away natural oils and create micro-tears or micro-trauma.
Dr. Cole-Adeife, who works at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) in Ikeja, shared these insights in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos. She explained that using a sponge regularly to bathe could also introduce bacteria and other microorganisms into the skin.
She compared the act of using a sponge to exfoliating the skin, emphasizing that the skin naturally exfoliates itself most of the time.
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“A lot of people cannot have their baths without sponges, but the truth of the matter is that you actually don’t need to bathe with a sponge too frequently or daily. Your skin exfoliates itself naturally most of the time,” Dr. Cole-Adeife said.
She further explained that frequent scrubbing with a sponge could strip the skin of its natural oils and lead to micro-tears, which may introduce harmful bacteria and cause skin irritation. “It can also cause itchy skin. If you have itchy skin, try not to use the sponge while bathing and see if that helps,” she advised.
For those who feel unclean without using a sponge, Dr. Cole-Adeife recommended limiting sponge use to once or twice a week, or at most three times a week. “In Nigeria, we feel if we do not scrub our skin squeaky clean, we have not had our bath. It is not absolutely necessary to use a sponge daily, but if you do not feel clean without using it, you can use it once or twice a week or, at most, three times a week,” she said.
